Troy University Athletics
Trojans Fall to Florida International
1/9/2008 6:00:00 AM | Basketball (W)
MIAMI, Fla. - The Troy University Trojans struggled throughout their Sun Belt Conference game against Florida International University, falling 55-49 at Pharmed Arena Wednesday night.
"To be quite honest we did not play well enough to win the game," head coach Michael Murphy said. "We shot the ball poorly and got outrebounded. That is a bad combination, if you don't shoot well and you get outrebounded then your chances are slim."
Trailing 29-21, the Trojans went on a 12-3 run over a span of four minutes to tie the game at 32-32 with 11:59 to play in the contest. Senior guard Amy Lewis started the run with a fast break lay-up with 15:15 to play, trimming the lead to 29-23. She followed that up with a 15-footer from the baseline on the next possession, trimming the lead to 29-25.
Junior Kylie Morrissy extended the run with a 10-footer, trimming the lead to 29-27 with 13:16 to play. Following a three-pointer by Florida International's Iva Ciglar extended the to 32-27, the Trojans's Lewis scored the next five points to tie the game.
Troy kept the came close in the second half, eventually tying the game up at 37-37 with 8:49 to play in the contest. However, Florida International was able to pull away late in the second half, scoring five consecutive points and holding off Troy for the final 81 seconds of the game.
"We lost a close game," Murphy said. "The game was tied with under four minutes to go and we just didn't make a couple of plays down the stretch, offensively or defensively, to give ourselves a victory. We just have to regroup and be ready for Saturday."
The two teams struggled throughout the first half, with the Trojans hold Florida International to just 23.5 (8-of-34) percent shooting from the floor; including connecting on just 16.7 (2-of-12) percent from behind the arc. The Golden Panthers' leading scorer, LaQuetta Ferguson was held scoreless in the first 20 minutes of the contest. Meanwhile, Troy was held to just 28 (7-of-25) percent shooting from the floor, while their leading scorer - Lewis - was held to just five points.
The Trojans seemed to have an answer to everything Florida International threw their way in the first 10 minutes of the contest, answering each Golden Panthers basket and taking a 14-12 lead. However, an 8:16 span in the first half without a field goal put the Trojans behind by as many as five points (20-15) with 4:40 remaining in the half.
The shooting drought was broken by Audrey Muse, when she put back an offensive rebound to trim the lead to 20-17 with 2:42 remaining in the half. The score stayed that way until the opening seconds of the second half.
Troy was led by Lewis with 19 points, while Muse posted a double-double with 11 points and 10 rebounds. Morrissy added 11 in the loss.
"Audrey has played well for four games in a row," Murphy said. "She has come close to posting a double-double, and when she hasn't she has recorded nine rebounds."
Florida International was led by Ciglar with 18 points, while Monika Bosilj finished with 12 in the victory. Jasmine Jenkins added six points and 11 rebounds, while Ferguson finished with just five points.
The Trojans shot 31.6 (18-of-57) percent from the floor, while connected on 44.4 (4-of-9) percent from behind the arc. They also connected on 81.8 (9-of-11) percent from the free throw line. Meanwhile, Florida International shot 31.7 (19-of-60) percent from the floor and 26.1 (6-of-23) percent from behind the arc. They also hit 91.7 (11-of-12) percent of their free throw attempts.
The Trojans return to action Saturday afternoon, finishing up their south Florida trip, against Florida Atlantic University. The game is set to tip at 3:00 p.m. in Boca Raton.
